Hi everyone, my name is kyle and ive been into computers/networking/security for a longggg time. Ever since i was 8 years old (now im 21). I went to college to recieve my AS with a major in networking, along that path I also have a few certificates (A+ Net+ and Sec+). I realllllyyyyy want to go straight into the security field, but its very hard. I cant even get a entry level networking job because I lack job experience. Anyways.... i was just wondering if anyone can help me out with my education. I'm not sure what other certificates to get. I was thinking about getting OSCP, SSCP, and CISSP. Any other ideas????

Welcome on board EH-Net. You have reached the best security forum in this universe. Well getting your first job is always a challenging task as people always ask for experience. However, I feel that with an impressive resume / profile, few certs and a professional way to market yourself will get you into the rolls.

As far as Education is concerned, I think you are in the right path. You already have A+, N+ and S+, now OSCP, SSCP, CISSP is the right way to move ahead. Just go through the forums and you will find lots of posts on similar topics already answered by fourm and industry veterans.

Welcome on board EH-Net. You have reached the best security forum in this universe. Well getting your first job is always a challenging task as people always ask for experience. However, I feel that with an impressive resume / profile, few certs and a professional way to market yourself will get you into the rolls.

As far as Education is concerned, I think you are in the right path. You already have A+, N+ and S+, now OSCP, SSCP, CISSP is the right way to move ahead. Just go through the forums and you will find lots of posts on similar topics already answered by fourm and industry veterans.

Wish you all the best.

Happy Learning

I've looked through other posts; mostly on CISSP. I wish I could obtain more professional certificates, but most of them require "job experience". At least when I take the SSCP and CISSP i will receive the "associates" version of the cert. I'm just hoping to get an interview >.<. Also, can anyone help me build a decent resume? My school had a class on making one, and somehow I got one of the best resumes according to my teacher. I know for a fact it's one of the worst ones in the world. Thank you ITT-Tech you peice of sh*t school.

I hear this question alot. Sometimes I speak at universities and this is a very popular question. One one side, this is a great issue becuase is shows how immature the industry is. What we do today can change an entire career field! But then again, if you are new to the security world, it is tought to get that first break.

One thing I noticed is there are not many companies that have a dedicated security person...although they want one. From what I have seen, if you get into a company as a network engineer or analyst of some sort (just about anything in IT, and show a strong interest in security, you can usually wear that hat...or parts of that hat. And I think this is a great way to introduce yourself simply due to the fact that you probably should work at the development and engineering side before security...just my opinion.

Like Art said, I see a lots of new people out fresh from college want to get into security field straight away. Well there is nothing wrong in that, but in my opinion security is a very specialized field and before you get into it one should have basic understanding and some experience in what you are trying to secure. Be it web application security or infrastructure security or Compliance Auditing, you should have basic knowledge and experience in web apps, should have advanced level knowledge in networking etc.

I would equate this to the medicine profession, where its a long hard journey to become a specialize doctor. To get there you need to have basic degree in medicine, internship residency and then you go for specialization. I am sure that is not so bad in security and there are short cuts but i feel some basic work experience, advance knowledge of networking and some programming skill is necessary to become a good security professional.

A good way to get you foot in the door of the IT industry is to take a job at a Help Desk. I know it seems low level and below your skill level and it probably is but a lot of companies like to hire from inside the company. If you show your supervisor (who probably supervises hirer level positions also) sees that you really know what you are doing then you have a good leg up on any positions you apply for in the company. You may have to put in a year or two at a lower pay and resposiblitly level but experience is experience and next step you could get a network admin job for the company. Welcome to EH Network and Good Luck!

The link above has some decent tips about putting your resume together. Keep in mind you should format your resume with a specific category of jobs in mind. For example if you applying for a Network Admin job you are going to highlight different aspects of your background and experience then if you applying for a Security Analyst job. Also expect to spend some time writing your resume if it only takes you 10-20 mins to write your resume then you should try again. Once you have finished your resume ask people to review it for you to pick up mistakes and get their opinion on how well it reads. By the way if you know someone who works in an HR department or who hires people they are great people to ask to review your resume. Again Good Luck!